Page 4 - Stroke Care and Research | UR Medicine | University of Rochester

Four Days After a Large Clot is Removed,

Bill Arena Goes Home

“Dr. Bhalla gave me back my husband. We will forever be in his debt. He’s an incredible

individual. And he has an incredible team.” —Maryanne Arena

Bill Arena had just received a haircut from his wife, Using X-ray guidance, a catheter was inserted into a
Maryanne, when he stopped talking mid-sentence and blood vessel in Bill’s thigh and then threaded up to the
had a dead look behind his eyes, like he was “frozen in location of the clot. A stentriever was then inserted
space.” Maryanne called 911 while her daughter, Jaime, through the catheter and moved into a position just
was able to walk Bill to a chair. Soon, he couldn’t talk or beyond the clot. Once it was expanded to its full size,
move his face, and the whole right side of his body was the stentriever was pulled over the clot to capture it and
paralyzed. Emergency Medical Technicians rushed Bill to gently pull it into the catheter—and then, out of Bill’s
Strong Memorial Hospital. body.

Imaging revealed that a large clot—about the size of a Bill was able to go home after a four-day stay in Strong’s
quarter—was blocking the blood supply to the part of Neuromedicine ICU. Within weeks, he was back working
Bill’s brain that controlled his ability to talk and to move on his horse farm, though his son, Lee, stayed close by his
the right side of his body. Doctors told Maryanne there side. After two months, Bill had resumed all of his regular
was a procedure they could do that might help. activities.
She said, “Yes! Go save him!”
“Dr. Bhalla gave me back my husband. We will forever be
Dr. Tarun Bhalla, co-director of Stroke and in his debt. He’s an incredible individual. And he has an
Cerebrovascular Services at UR Medicine, led a surgical incredible team,” says Maryanne. “Strong is the best.
team in a procedure called an endovascular embolectomy. I just can’t say enough about them.”